Final Art Process Reflection

• Identify two works from this school year that you find to be the most successful examples of your creative development. Include image, title, and project for each. 

The two works that I found were my most successful pieces were:

1. Someone Protecting Them Self. (Plaster Sculpture and Clay Moquette)

2. Exploring the Woods. (Ink Drawings and Photographs in Book)

• Explain, using art vocabulary relevant to the project, why these works stand out to you. Also, articulate the development each work illustrates (ie the craft, formal and/or conceptual qualities that you honed in the making of the works). 

Plaster Sculpture: 
     This work stands out to me as a successful work because of all the thought I put into it to simplify the form of the figure. I revised and simplified my figure on paper, as clay, and, finally, as plaster. After focusing on and simplifying the form of the figure, I ended up with a simplified, fluid gesture sculpture.


Book:
     For my book I focused on working with different line qualities. I worked with two different types of drawings: one with a brush and the other with an ink dropper. With both of these I focused on drawing in the dark parts of tree bark in ink, and leaving the lighter parts as negative space. As you can see, the concepts of line quality and shadow were very important aspects to my drawings, and I paid very close attention to these elements of my drawings.

• Identify your least successful work. What did you learn from the experience of making the work? What would you do differently knowing what you know now?

I think that my least successful work was my Texture Sculpture project. In the experience of making this work I learned valuable information about staying focused during class. I had to create lots of different elements to create my sculpture, and I did not use my class time effectively. By not staying focused I ended up with a lot of work to do and not enough time to finish, which led me to rush my work and not pay close attention to detail. This error resulted in a very scrappy looking final product that is not very successful. After learning this valuable lesson I put more focus into our work periods, and my last two projects, the two after my texture collage, are the two that I am most proud of.

• What skills do you consider to be your greatest strengths?

I think that my greatest strength is drawing. Throughout the year we have covered many different mediums, and I have discovered that I am most successful in drawing. Especially during the wintertime, I have honed my drawing skills by drawing in my two sketchbooks (one in class and one at home). From the beginning of the year, when I had no artistic experience to now, to now, I have improved tremendously in all aspects of art, but especially in drawing.

• Evaluate your overall effort in this class. (In what ways did you give it your all? Where could you have improved?)

For the most part, I have put a lot of effort into my classwork. I feel that I always, even if talking to friends, focused on drawing rather than the conversation. In Ms. Seal's words, I always "moved my hand more than my lips". There was one section of one or two days, as I stated above, where I did not focus completely on my artwork and chose to talk to friends instead of working. I definitely learned my lesson when I did that and focused for pretty much the rest of the year. 

• What are you most excited about pursuing in future artistic endeavors?

On looking back at my first year in art, I see the extreme amount of progress I have made. I started this year with no artistic experience, and in one short year I have improved drastically. I am excited to further explore art to see what I am truly capable of with more time dedicated to art. I am planning on taking Intermediate Drawing and Painting next year, and I am looking forward to learning more about painting, as well as pushing my drawing to another level.

• How might skills you've developed in this class impact your learning and process beyond the art studio?

In this class I have learned to be careful. When drawing or chipping away at a sculpture, you have to go slow and work carefully. This act of slowing down applies to many situations in everyday life, you have to go slow and live in the moment, a concept that I think about on a daily basis. By slowing down you begin to love what you have, which makes you a happier person.

 For my book I chose for my theme to be trees, and, specifically, tree bark. In my drawings I have drawn in the shadows and dark areas of the tree bark, which leave the areas of the bark that catch light as negative space.  In my photographs I believe that I showed the form of the landscapes well by strategically capturing textured foregrounds, which adds a layering effect and a third dimension to the photographs. The line quality in some of my drawings are very specific, and one is able to tell that lots of attention was put into the detail of the drawings.

Plaster Sculpture Reflection

How did you come to consider the idea or concept of “Metamorphosis” through your work in this project?  How does your work physically address that insight?

I think that my sculpture has changed and grown throughout this project. It has changed from a figure to an abstract sketch to a clay sculpture to a plaster sculpture. Through this transition I feel that my sculpture has changed to portray the motion more thoroughly. I was tying to show the viewer the tension in the arm protecting the figure, and how it cringed away from something above. I think that I did a good job in showing the movement.

How did you push yourself to gain a better understanding of the physical properties of the plaster?  In what ways to you come to better control the various tools you employed?

Throughout the plaster carving process I learned a lot of helpful information on what to use each tool for, mostly through trial and error. I had to closely watch what kind of texture each tool made on the plaster, and use these attributes for the better. I also learned how plaster crumbles and how to carve the plaster without causing damage to the final product. Overall this project was a large learning experience for me.

In what ways did your intentions change over the course of your project?  What opportunities or occurrences led to these changes?


 At the beginning of the plaster carving process, I planned on making a removable head similar to that of my clay sculpture. While working with plaster I realized that making this sphere would be nearly impossible. After learning of the physical characteristics of plaster I had to change my sculpture to make it work. I am content with the changes, and am glad because I have different sculptures between my clay and plaster sculpture.




Given what you know now about the material, how might you have changed your concept or approach to working?


Now that I know about plaster, I may have not have originally planned on making a removable head. Luckily before I made irreversible changes I contemplated the shape of my sculpture and decided against the head. After completing this project I realize that I have learned a lot about working with many different materials, and which tools to use for any given situation.

In Process Reflection

Someone Protecting Themself

I am working on showing the shape of the figure, the action is very natural and instinctual, so I am trying to portray this action as a fluid shape.

Degree of Exploration

How well do your drawings capture the gesture of the figure? 

     I think that my drawings capture the gesture of the figure well, as there is a clear sense of movement in the drawing that represents the models motion well. 

How thoroughly did you explore the process of simplifying and “abstracting” the gestures in order to best capture your intended form?

     The simplification started with my original sketches, in which I tried to just cut down the human form into very few lines, linking many limbs and body parts into one, flowing line. This simplified the figure into the key lines that I based my later sketches around. In my later sketches and diagrams of my sculpture I made these lines three dimensional, creating a simple, abstract clay moquette.

In what ways have your intentions change over the course of your project so far?  What opportunities or occurrences led to these changes?

     Originally, with my first motion drawings, I tried to simplify the models motion into the key lines of the figure. Once I had to make my figures three dimensional I could not have a stick figure, and thus i had to have some changes which included making lines into thicker, blobs of clay. This was the main transformation that I have encountered so far, and I am expecting to encounter even more transformations as I switch medium again, to plaster.

Motion Drawings